Yevlakh

Yevlakh is not a destination in itself for most travellers: it is a transit point, the kind of town you get to know through the train window or during a connection stop. It sits on the Kura river plain, at about 300 metres above sea level, and in summer the river's humid heat permeates everything. The banks of the Kura here are wide and brown, with sparse vegetation along the edges and a quietness that contrasts with the activity at the train station.

The town centre has a relatively orderly layout, with the train station as the main reference point. The main street has shops, çayxana —teahouses where men play nard in the early afternoon— and a few restaurants serving piti, the Azerbaijani lamb and chickpea stew cooked in individual clay pots. Prices are low even by Azerbaijani standards, making Yevlakh an affordable stop.

Its geographical importance is real: Yevlakh is the crossroads between Baku, Sheki to the north, Ganja to the west, and since 2020, the corridor linking to the Karabakh territories recovered by Azerbaijan. This gives it a logistical weight that does not necessarily translate into tourist appeal, but anyone travelling through the region will almost certainly pass through it.

The Yevlakh area has been inhabited since antiquity, with archaeological remains from the Caucasian Albania period. The modern city gained importance in the 19th century when the Russian Empire built the Transcaucasian railway and Yevlakh became a junction on the Baku-Tbilisi line. During the Soviet period it developed as an industrial and agricultural centre of the Kura plain. The nearby city of Mingachevir, with its large reservoir on the Kura, absorbed part of the economic weight of the area from the mid-20th century onwards.

• Kura riverbank The river is the town's most notable presence. In the evening, when temperatures drop, the riverside parks come to life with families and sunflower seed vendors.
• Central market Seasonal fruit stalls —Kura melons in August, pomegranates in autumn— vegetables and bulk spices. The atmosphere is more for locals than tourists.
• Train station A Soviet building of some scale with partly preserved mosaics on the facade. Useful as an orientation point and connection hub for Baku, Ganja and Tbilisi.
• Day trip to Mingachevir 30 km away, the city of the large artificial reservoir on the Kura. The lake is visible from the road and has a river beach frequented by local families in summer.

Yevlakh has a train station on the Baku-Ganja-Tbilisi line; trains from Baku take about three hours. Frequent buses run from Baku's bus terminal (about 3.5 hours). By car from Baku it is about 290 km via the M2 motorway. From Ganja it is only 90 km to the east on the same road. The city works well as a base for visiting Mingachevir or as a stop en route to Sheki, 100 km to the north.

Spring —April to June— is the most pleasant season, with temperatures between 18 and 28 degrees and the Kura river still visibly flowing. Summer is hot and humid, with maximum temperatures exceeding 38 degrees in July and August; it is not a season recommended for staying longer than necessary. Autumn brings late melons and more bearable temperatures. Winter is cold but rarely snowy on the plain.